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San Francisco 49ers: 5 Biggest Mistakes the Team Made This Offseason

By Trevor Irvine

January 20, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke addresses the media in a press conference after naming Chip Kelly (not pictured) as the new head coach for the 49ers at Levi's Stadium Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
January 20, 2016; Santa Clara, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke addresses the media in a press conference after naming Chip Kelly (not pictured) as the new head coach for the 49ers at Levi's Stadium Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 24, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke speaks to the media during the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 24, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; San Francisco 49ers general manager Trent Baalke speaks to the media during the 2016 NFL Scouting Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports /

Trent Baalke should have been fired

Let’s get the most controversial selection out of the way here, huh?

Don’t get me wrong — Baalke has done lots of good for the 49ers organization. He played a part in the hiring of former head coach Jim Harbaugh. He has drafted many good players, such as center Daniel Kilgore, former running back and now-tight end Bruce Miller, quarterback Colin Kaepernick, running back Carlos Hyde, safety Eric Reid and linebacker Aaron Lynch.

But the list of players he has drafted, who have turned into arguable busts (excluding the last two drafts for time and reference sake) is staggering.

  • 2011: three out of 10 players drafted still on team
  • 2012: zero out of seven players still on team
  • 2013: six out of 11 players still on team
  • 2014: 10 out of 12 players still on team

So this equates to a 47.5 percent success rate. He is not even average on his draft selections, he is below average. This is extremely poor for a man who is paid a lot of money to get these decisions right.

Of course there is the argument that you can never guarantee talent and the draft is a craps shoot on finding and keeping NFL players. It basically is, but with all the resources available today to scout players and a group preparing to create a draft board, you should be doing better than 47.5 percent.

Then when you throw in the hiring of “yes-man” Tomsula and his incompetent staff, the egg is smelling much more rotten.

Whether you feel Baalke is a good GM or not (and any positive opinion is very understandable), the roster (which he controls) has taken a marked downturn in the last two years. Yes, there were retirements out of his control, namely Chris Borland and Anthony Davis.

There were the retirements of Patrick Willis and Justin Smith which ripped a large experience hole on the playing field.

His propensity for drafting “Team ACL” or “All ACL” players has backfired. Marcus Lattimore never made the practice field, and Tank Carradine and Brandon Thomas have severely underwhelmed. “Waiting for next year” has resulted in campaigns getting worse, from 13-3 in 2011 to 5-11 last season.

Additionally, the Niners have gone from having one of the strongest rosters in 2012-13 to one of the worst rosters in 2016. That’s less than four years.

This time frame is bad.

If you were running a private business and you performed like this, you’d be gone in a heartbeat. How Baalke survives this mediocrity show is baffling. How much more rope can he be given?

Baalke is not the worst GM in football, but he is far from the best. He was fortunate to hold onto his role for 2016 after last year’s debacle. His hot seat is getting warmer. He should have been fired at the same time as Tomsula, but York is his little buddy and “believes in him”.

For any reason the Kelly hire backfires spectacularly on the organization in 2016, Baalke will have to go before the 2017  campaign.

Another coaching debacle within two years is terms for ground zero. York will have no other option (since he won’t fire himself) but to pull the trigger on Baalke if 2016 resembles 2015.

Next: Keeping Ahmad Brooks